This image was lost some time after publication, but you can still view it here.

That's right, kids — we snuck into the General's holiday party over at the world's biggest automaker's world's biggest Heritage Center, located deep in the heart of Reagan Democratic politics — Sterling Heights, MI. Although we made it in a bit late, we still found ourselves in range to fire a few questions at Chief Exec "Slick" Rick Wagoner, who wore a smile that told the story of the night — "What? We're an auto company in trouble? Wait, phew — I'm not Ford!" But while other — more real — journalists went after C-levels like the FO, Fritz "Earn This" Henderson, we knew we wanted to spend a few brief moments with "Maximum" Bob Lutz. Unfortunately, the only words Bob said to us were "Oh, Hi" and "I need to get one of those hamburgers" as he moved past us towards a food station serving sliced tenderloin and dinner rolls, Road & Track editor Matt DeLorenzo following along behind toe-to-heel — but whatevs, we could almost smell fuel trucks in the jetwash left in his wake. Although intoxicating as the kerosene and paraffin scent may have been, we needed to press on, next meeting up with some of the other younger auto journos from both the interwebs as well as from the ink and paper outlets, where we were provided with some supercilious attention from an overzelous Chevy PR staffer. And as I looked over at the mainstream media young'ns who were now tasting the same not-at-all-condescending reaction us web outlets normally receive, I felt a sense that all was right in the world. Then I remembered I was at the GM Holiday Party and immediately left to go home and spent an hour in the shower with lava soap and a scrub brush. Feel free to check out the gallery of the evening below, starting from bottom to top if you're reading the narrative going along with the pictures.

This image was lost some time after publication, but you can still view it here.